"There are thousands of people in the world, and in the final analysis, there are only four people, such as scholars, farmers, industrialists, and merchants."

"The 'scholar' in it mainly refers to warriors in my Han family, not scribes."

"For the rest of the agriculture, industry, and commerce, my Han family attaches great importance to agriculture and light business, and does not attach importance to or despise craftsmen."

A moment later, the Son of Heaven Qi and Gongzi Sheng, the most noble father and son in the world, sat on the ridge of the roadside like ordinary peasants.

The servant Liu She led the carriage and waited for the father and son from a distance.

And Tianzi Qi took this opportunity to tell Liu Sheng about the Han family's national policy of 'emphasizing agriculture and suppressing business'.

"As early as the time of Emperor Taizu Gao, the national policy of agriculture as the foundation and business as the end has been established."

"——For Nongben, Emperor Taizu Gao attaches great importance to it;"

"In order to let the people who hid in the mountains and forests and escaped the war at the end of the Qin Dynasty go down the mountain again and cultivate the abandoned fields, Emperor Taizu Gao ordered: Anyone who is willing to register in the government and become a citizen of the Han family will be given 100 acres of land."

"In addition to a hundred acres of land, there is also the title of a duke, a farmhouse, as well as grain seeds and farm tools."

"Because of these measures, my Han family was able to quickly settle down the people of the world and resume production and labor after the war at the end of the Qin Dynasty."

···

"But for the merchants, Emperor Taizu Gao stipulated: Anyone who does not cultivate the land and turns to make profits from the merchants is recorded in a separate household register, which is: merchant registration."

"Those who are registered as merchants must live in a place designated by the government, and can only buy and sell goods in the markets designated by the government;"

"Also, you can't wear clothes made of silk or ride in a carriage······

Listening to the gentle voice of the Son of Heaven, Liu Sheng only nodded his head from time to time;

But when he heard this last sentence, Liu Sheng's expression suddenly became strange.

Turning his head, he looked not far away, wearing a Chinese costume made of Shu brocade, sitting proudly in the carriage, beckoning the merchant who was buying rice and grain;

When he turned around, Liu Sheng looked at Tianziqi's gaze, and he was already full of astonishment.

This?

Yes?

Explain?

"The rule that merchants can't wear clothes made of silk and can't ride in horse-drawn carriages hasn't been mentioned for a long time······"

"This is because the first emperor wanted to use the power of merchants to make the world rich as soon as possible, so he deliberately indulged······"

A slightly embarrassed explanation, which made Liu Sheng 'oh~', and then took back all the sneers that were visible to the naked eye in the eyes of Tianziqi.

Tianzi Qi also immediately reshaped his face and continued: "The national policy of suppressing commerce was temporarily forgotten because of the deliberate indulgence of the first emperor; ”

"But heavy agriculture will never be forgotten, and there must be no changes."

"Because the common people need to cultivate to obtain food, and the court also needs peasants, who pay agricultural taxes to the court to distribute the salaries of officials and the salaries of the army."

"Therefore, the most important national capital of my Han family is farming."

"A large-scale grain failure is enough to be called: shaking the country's ······"

"Because the grain harvest is poor, it means that taxes cannot be collected, and even if they do, they will only receive much less agricultural taxes than in the past."

"And the grain harvest failure will make the already poor peasant households more and more poor, coupled with the fact that the merchants are stockpiling grain and raising prices, it will make the world complain, and the people will not be able to make a living."

"If the court intervenes, it will take countless money and food to make the situation slightly better;"

"But if the court ignores it, the people will not be able to eat enough and wear warm clothes, and they will be disappointed in the court and the emperor."

"When disappointment accumulates to a certain extent, people like Chen Sheng and Wu Guang will definitely appear ······"

As he spoke, Tianzi Qi's face became more and more serious, and his tone was a little relaxed.

As soon as the words came out, he let out a long sigh leisurely, and gently handed the obviously stunted millet into Liu Sheng's hand, and gently put his hand on Liu Sheng's shoulder.

"You have to remember: peasants, you must eat."

"Even if you can't feed everyone, at least make most people feel full—at least half full."

"If you do this, you will be loved by the people, and no matter what difficulties you encounter, the people will be willing to help you."

"—because they will think that it is you, the emperor, who will be able to feed them."

"On the other hand, if you can't do this, you will lose the support of the people of the world."

"They won't care what you do or don't do;"

"They will only say: since you sat on the throne, they have never had a full meal······"

In the end, Tianzi Qi lowered his head and snorted at the 'thin' corn stalk in Liu Sheng's hand.

"Just like this stalk, just a pole of millet, it is enough to prove that the national foundation of my Han family has been shaken;"

"If I, the emperor, don't do something and let this stalk of millet seedlings become the reason for the hunger and cold of the people of the world, then this stalk of millet will become the evidence that I have ruined the temple and the community and failed the people of the world."

"Even if you go underground, Emperor Taizu Gao and Emperor Xiaowen of the first Taizong will take this stalk and ask me: We entrusted you with Cangsheng Lishu, are you taking care of it like this?"

"You, is that what the emperor did?"

"Is this the answer you gave us·······

The serious words provoked Liu Sheng to nod his head again and again, and secretly kept the words of the Son of Heaven in his heart.

- In fact, these words do not need to be deliberately remembered by Liu Sheng;

After all, such an easy-to-understand truth, as long as you are not a meat eater who can say, 'Why not eat minced meat', it is impossible not to understand.

But for the Son of Heaven to say such a thing, Liu Sheng still felt a little moved.

After all, in Liu Sheng's opinion, Daddy Liu Qi should also be a member of the 'meat eater' group.

For the members of this group, to have such a deep understanding, Liu Sheng, a quasi-prince from a peasant family, is really a little impressive.

Nodding his head again, indicating that he would not forget Tianziqi's admonition, Liu Sheng lowered his head and carefully looked at the pole in his hand.

Soon, Liu Sheng frowned slightly, and was about to raise his head to ask, but saw that Tianziqi beside him had already put on a posture of 'ask, I will answer your doubts'.

was stunned by Tianziqi's posture, and after a long pause, Liu Sheng pursed his lips a little hesitantly.

"Father, do you know about farming?"

"-Hey!"

When Liu Sheng asked, he only provoked the Son of Heaven to smile, and between his eyebrows, a complicated look immediately appeared.

There is pride, there is pride;

is also a little embarrassed, and unbearable······

"Back then, when the first emperor was still the acting king, several of our brothers would also follow the first emperor and farm in the palace."

"Even later, when the first emperor came to Chang'an and sat on the throne, he still did not abandon this habit."

"The first emperor is still like this, I, the prince of the prince, have also been by the side of the first emperor and have fiddled with the crops~"

After a relaxed word, he saw Tianzi Qi frowning slightly, and then looked at Liu Sheng with some suspicion: "How can I remember ······?"

"Hiss~"

"-The grain planted by the first emperor, you bastard should have eaten it, right?"

was reminded by the Son of Heaven that Liu Sheng suddenly realized: Liu Sheng really ate the crops planted by the first emperor Liu Heng himself!

I have to say: Emperor Liu Heng of the former Taizong Xiaowen not only has a hand in being an emperor, but even planting food, it is definitely something.

And there's a lot of stuff!

It's just that even so, Liu Sheng still had a trace of instinctive distrust in his gaze when he looked at Tianzi Qi.

As for the reason······

"Of course the retainers have eaten the grain grown by the emperor's grandfather;"

"But Erchen vaguely remembers: The bowl of rice porridge had just been cooked, and before Erchen had time to eat it, news came from the palace gate;"

"Said that my father went out again and returned late and was arrested by the court captain Zhang Shizhi?"

"Later, in order to calm Zhang Tingwei's anger, the emperor's grandfather ······"

"Oh;"

"Still to Zhang Tingwei, hmm, take off your hat and apologize?"

···

"Hiss~~~"

“emmmmmm！！！”

···

As soon as the words were spoken, Liu Sheng clearly heard the sound of Tianziqi's extremely heavy breathing in his ears.

Cautiously turned his head to the side, and out of the corner of his eye, he saw that Tianziqi's complexion had turned red again into the color of pork liver······

"Uh······"

"That, the son has something to ask his father!"

"Serious business!"

hurriedly said a word, seeing that Tianzi Qi's face still did not warm up in the slightest, Liu Sheng hurriedly said: "That, Erchen doesn't understand!" ”

"Father, father and emperor said that the grain harvest in Guanzhong was poor because the men in Guanzhong went to quell the rebellion."

"But it's just a man, and it's not a person from everyone in Guanzhong?"

"Even if some farmers delay spring plowing because the male family members went out to quell the rebellion, the output will not be reduced by more than 30% compared with the past?"

"-Father, tell your son!"

"Erchen wants to know!"

"Really want to know!!"

The flustered tone did not divert Tianziqi's attention from Liu Sheng's previous words.

just strained his face like this, staring at Liu Sheng with compassion, and looked at it for ten breaths;

Liu Sheng, who was watching, was sweating on his forehead, and Tianzi Qicai turned his head with a gloomy face and withdrew his gaze from Liu Sheng's worried face.

Looking at the boundless wilderness, he looked at it for a long time, and then took a long breath, and the Son of Heaven finally calmed the anger in his chest.

As for Liu Sheng's 'question', Tianzi Qi also gave the answer immediately

"Farming has never been easy."

"At the beginning of spring, farmers sow seeds at the right time and irrigate abundantly after planting;"

"From sowing to germination, the frequency of irrigating acres will be very high."

"After the crops germinate, farmers still need to take care of them, weeding and irrigating them on time."

"I was busy until the fall, and I had to be full of anxiety and pray that the harvest would not be too small······"

···

"And the rebellion at the beginning of this year not only caused some farmers in Guanzhong to temporarily lose their male families."

"——At the beginning of spring in March, it is time for spring ploughing in Guanzhong, and the rebellion in Kanto is not over yet;"

"Therefore, in order not to delay sowing, the farmers in Guanzhong can only help each other and sow grain seeds."

"But this rebellion has prevented at least one-third of the men in Guanzhong from staying at home during spring ploughing, which makes the canals and ravines in various places unable to be cleaned and dredged as in previous years."

"One-third of the men went to Kanto, and the remaining two-thirds had to take care of their own fields while helping their neighbors, so naturally they couldn't take full care of their own fields."

"Coupled with the fact that the canals are not cleaned and dredged, and the crops are not properly irrigated and well cared for, it is not surprising that there is such a reduction in yields······

In an inexplicable melancholy tone, he gave Liu Sheng an answer, and Tianzi Qi finally lost his anger;

He lowered his head sideways again, just glanced at the stalk in Liu Sheng's hand, and Tianziqi's eyes were already filled with a little sadness.

"It's all pretty good······"

"——When Emperor Taizu Gao, every time a prince with a different surname made a rebellion in the eastern part of the country, the grain in the Guanzhong was reduced by half, most of the time, or even completely lost!"

"At the worst of the situation, three consecutive years of poor harvests and no harvests raised the price of grain in Guanzhong to 8,000 yuan per stone;"

"The treasury and the treasury are empty, and Emperor Taizu Gao's chariot can't get together eight horses of the same color;"

"Pingyang Hou Cao Shen, the identity of the dignified prime minister, can't even use a horse-drawn cart, can only sit on an ox cart to ······"

"The court is still like this, and the people are starving all over the wilderness."

"The first emperor once told me that the first emperor had seen the people of a village with his own eyes, because they had nothing to eat, they could only exchange food with their neighbors for children······"

In the end, Tianzi Qi's eyes were already red, as if he was worried about the painful scene that he had never seen with his own eyes.

Even Liu Sheng, who was on the side of Tianzi Qi, who only asked such a question in order to let his father lose his anger, suddenly sank.

Liu Sheng knows the suffering of the peasants.

Liu Sheng himself has experienced the hardships of farmers.

But Rao is like this, and Liu Sheng also feels sympathy and worry for the peasants of this era.

Because Liu Sheng knew that in the era he lived in, no matter how hard the peasants were, they would not worry about food and clothing.

- At the very least, in those days, the peasants did not need to divide a part of the fruits of their labor as 'agricultural taxes'······

"What are you going to do, father?"

"Something else to do besides tax exemption, right?"

"Can't you just watch the people in Guanzhong, because of the rebellion of Liu Wei and Liu Wu, they can't even eat?"

In just a moment, Liu Sheng's tone was inexplicably a little urgent;

It seems that at this moment, Liu Sheng is no longer Gongzisheng, but a peasant representative who was fortunate enough to come to Tianziqi to represent the people of Guanzhong and ask Tianziqi to 'take some measures'.

In this regard, the Son of Heaven smiled with satisfaction, and nodded slightly.

let out a short sigh again, and once again answered Liu Sheng's doubts.

"I, there will be a move."

"The exemption of agricultural tax and corn tax is only the proper reason in the question."

"The next focus is on how to control and stabilize grain prices so as to protect farmers as much as possible."

"—especially homesteaders."

"Because homesteaders are the most solid and loyal supporters of my Liu Han Sheji."

···

"The salaries of the officials and the salaries of the army need to be paid by the yeoman peasants to pay agricultural taxes;"

"On the other hand, those who received the salary, joined the army, and fought on the battlefield for my Liu Han are still the sons and nephews of these homesteaders, that is, the 'sons of good families'."

"—Taxes, paid by yeoman farmers, military service, are paid by yeoman peasants;"

"Even the repair and maintenance of roads and canals, the construction of cities and imperial tombs, are all carried out by these yeoman farmers."

"That's why I said: as long as you treat the farmers well, the emperor can get the support of the people of the world."

"——Because for the emperor, for the temple, and for the sheji, it has always been the farmers who have been contributing to the world."

"As for the rest, they are not, and they are far less important than the peasants."

In the end, Tianziqi's tone was more and more relaxed.

It's not because the Son of Heaven at this time is no longer worried about the grain failure in Guanzhong this year;

But for today, being able to teach Liu Sheng this way, and getting enough feedback from Liu Sheng to satisfy him, made Tianziqi feel a heartfelt peace of mind.

I don't know if it's an illusion;

Tianzi Qi always felt that this bastard thing in front of him seemed to be more aware of the pain of the peasants than himself.

And for the Son of Heaven and the Han family, a prince who can empathize with the peasants, and at the same time has a tough enough personality and is hot enough, is really a bit ······

"I don't know how this kid can be so concerned about the affairs of the peasants?"

"Since I was a child, I haven't been out of the palace a few times······"

After thinking for a moment in confusion, Tianzi Qi classified this as 'talent'.

Even with it, looking at the little bastard in front of him, it became more and more pleasing to the eye.

"Eh, Father;"

"Then the agricultural tax will be collected first and then refunded, what will be refunded?"

"Food, or money?"

"—return the money."

"——The grain will be stored in the Shaofu first, and then sold to the people at a flat price next year."

"Oh······"

···

"Why don't you just return the grain?"

"—because the grain is returned, the people will sell it to the merchants first."

"- Farmers, there is no way to store too much food······"

"Oh······"

"Got it······"

···

"What about the tax?"

"Refund the money too?"

"—of course."

"-Ma Zheng, the servant, needs these weeds as fodder."

"Oh······"

···

"That Shaofu, where did you get so much money?"

"—the first emperor saved;"

"-Ahem, I've saved a little bit in the past few years······"

"—it's enough anyway."

···

···

"Little bastard;"

"-Huh?"

"In the future, you also have to learn to save money;"

"Be like the first emperor and me, and save money."

"The money you save, even if you give two buckets of rice to the people of the world, is better than your own extravagance and enjoyment ······"

···

"Remember?!"

"-Remember, remember!"

"—what are you shouting······"

"Remember, don't answer yet!"

"What a bastard thing!!"

···

···

······

On the horizon, the sun sets;

The wilderness, red up and down.

On the side of the road, on the ridge of the field, the father and son sat next to each other, talking and scolding;

From time to time, I also laughed······

(End of chapter)